Generally, a kind of double bearing fishing reel, having a line guide device for example, as disclosed in Japanese Utitlity Model Laid-Open Gagette No. Sho 57-141,768, is so constructed that, between a pair of side frames for rotatably supporting the spool, a tubular guide shaft having a slit is provided in parallel to the axis of the spool, and a level wind shaft having traverse grooves is supported rotatably inside the guide shaft and associated with a drive mechanism for the spool. The fishing line guide which has a fishing line guide unit is supported at the outer periphery of the guide shaft in relation of being movable in reciprocation axial thereof, and a slider engageable with the traverse grooves is held by the fishing line guide. Rotation of the level wind shaft is transmitted to the fishing line guide through the traverse grooves and slider and the fishing line guide is moved in reciprocation to wind onto the spool a fishing line.
The conventional fishing line guide device, however, supports the fishing line guide at one support point to the guide shaft, so that when the fishing line guide is subjected to a large load, in other words, when a large fish is hooked, the guide shaft is subject to being deformed. Also, in order to increase the strength of the guide shaft, it is necessary to form a larger diameter guide shaft, whereby the fishing line guide also becomes larger, with the result that the fishing reel as a whole becomes large and heavy.
The fishing line guide, which is supported only to the guide shaft provided outside the level wind shaft as described above, may cause a large backlash between the fishing line guide and the guide shaft due to an error created when they are processed.
As a result, since the fishing line guide is largely inclined axially of the guide shaft, a load applied to the fishing line guide is transmitted from a part thereof to the guide shaft, thereby creating a problem in that the guide shaft has diminished durability.
Also, the guide shaft separate from the level wind shaft having the traverse grooves supports the fishing line guide holding thereon the slider engageable with the traverse grooves, whereby unless a thin adjusting plate or a spring is provided between the slider and the guide, the slider cannot be positioned accurately with respect to the traverse grooves.